<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

Because I had eaten 2 cans of "Stagg Steak House Chili" in the mistaken
belief that the modified food starch in its ingredients list came from corn
as has been posted in the www and usenet, and had a reaction to said chili,
I asked the FDA what exactly was "modified food starch." Unfortunately their
answer was that it can be made from gliadin-bearing sources, so modified
food starch is NOT safe for us - unless we can get a guarantee from the
specific manufacturer that their modified starch does not contain gliadin.

Actually, the FDA's response tells quite a bit more: that just about any
processed food is likely to contain gliadin, and that the only way to be
sure about a specific product is to ask its manufacturer.

> Modified starch is made from many sources. It is a starch that has
> changed by mechanical or chemical process to get specific properties.
> It can be cereal grains i.e. corn,wheat, or tubers (potato, tapioca,
> arrowroot), Sago from certain palm trees,or rice.
> Gliadin is the protein in gluten and is found in the following foods:
> Commercial chocolate milk, malted milk, any creamed or breaded vegatables
> , breads made with wheat, rye, oats, barley, and buckwheat,
> noodles, spaghetti, macroni,pastas made from wheat, rye, oats, barley and
> buckwheat,  meats, poultry or fish prepared with any of the afore
> listed grains including cold cuts, sandwich spreads and canned meat as
> well as processed cheese.
>
> Since these starches are used as thicking agents you may have to write
> to food companies to find out which modified starch was used in
> a product.

> Lyn Goossens, MPH, RD *************************************************
> Office of Consumer Education, FDA, CFSAN ******************************
> Telephone: (202) 205-4732 ********************************
> E-mail address:  [log in to unmask] *******************************
> FDA Homepage:  http://www.fda.gov *************************************
> Toll Free Hot Line: 1-800-332-4010 Monday-Friday Noon til 4pm EST

Even before this answer I had come to the conclusion that the best solution
was to buy only fresh meats, fruits and vegetables (organic if possible), and
prepare them myself. I gave up on breads, cookies and baked products since
their ingredients derive from processed grains which may be contaminated
with gliadin-containing grains (buckwheat flour and oats are contaminated
with wheat most of the time). It is a myth that we have to eat cereal grains
- I don't eat them, I don't miss them, and I am much healthier because
instead I eat more fruit more meat and more vegetables which are packed
with nutrients and don't contain gluten or gliadin. Yes, with a lot of
work and questions to manufacturers we can reconstruct a gluten-free form
of our old processed diet with all its cakes and cookies, but after my lesson
with the chili and the FDA response below, I don't think that modifying
the old processed diet is worth the work and the risk to our health.

HTH,

Luis Patino